The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants Review – An Adventurous Dose of Giggle-Provoking Fun
Could those early viewers who chuckled through the initial SpongeBob adventures have envisioned the series enduring for a 25 years, even after experiencing the most lysergic of plotlines? This longevity is in part attributed to its wide-ranging appeal, amusing the funny bones of adults – possibly even those now grown students – alongside the very young viewers. Although it can't claim anything quite as surprising as the legendary David Hasselhoff appearance in the 2004 film, this fourth feature thinks nothing of making Clancy Brown speak as a pirate while handing out royalty cheques to music icons like Barbra Streisand. It seems everything remains possible in the whimsical world of Bikini Bottom.
A Familiar Zany Groove
Kicking off with a festive short starring Paramount's alternative weathered family favorites, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, the new SpongeBob film soon finds a comfortably goofy groove. Its storyline serves as a family-friendly exploration on the advantages and disadvantages of maturity. This iteration of SpongeBob (again voiced by Tom Kenny) now measures a specific height, a fact that thrills him as it at last allows him to ride his dream rollercoaster. (An early, psychedelic laugh: our overexcitable hero's imagined loop-the-loops.) Yet, like the best modern American animation, the true rollercoaster is the twisting narrative.
The Quest for Pirate Credentials
SpongeBob's mission to obtain the legendary pirate license that will prove him a “big guy” brings him into a showdown with the ghostly Flying Dutchman, brought to life by the suddenly ubiquitous Mark Hamill. While the Dutchman's ship introduces a larger scale, the movie's visual style remains a delightful bricolage of digital animation and hand-crafted components, consistently highlighting satisfying, authentically animated effects.
Whether its freewheeling silliness will linger when the lights come up is up for discussion, but it's a solid SpongeBob movie.
Notable moments feature SpongeBob squeezing himself into an air conditioner and coming out inexplicably squarer than before; a cameo from a pair of chattering novelty false teeth; and a punishment guaranteed to delight the younger crowd: our hero being subjected to never-ending dishwashing.
Final Thoughts
In the end, Search for SquarePants stands as a solid addition to the franchise – and arguably the funniest pirate-themed movie in years, including a robust Davy Jones joke and a cheekily suggestive saying for SpongeBob's pal Patrick: “The best guys are big guys.” It's clear: those early fans will likely be snickering anew.
Release Dates: The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants arrives on December 19th in the US, December 20th in Ireland, and 26 December in Australia and the UK.